Big Wolf; 🐺

A little later, as I descended the mountain road, I saw the old mountain house. The anger from the incident in the town center instantly vanished from my face. The moment I saw the house, everything melted away. It was like a living, breathing structure. It was just as I remembered from my childhood. But it seemed to have aged over the years.

I got out of the car and approached the door with the creaking of the porch. The key was still in the same place. Under the pot in front of the window. I took the key and pushed open the heavy wooden door with my trembling hands. At that moment, it was as if the silence of years descended upon me. Everything screamed that no one had touched it for a long time.

I was laughing to myself, shaking my head.

"Grandma..." I said, calling out to the empty house. "You really left me an old and dusty mountain house. How did you think I would celebrate Christmas in this house?"

Yes, it looked intimidating, but I had to start somewhere.

I rolled up my sleeves and got to work.

I swept and wiped for hours. Now my hands were aching and some back pain had been added. But the house was slowly beginning to remember itself.

When I finished my work, the sun had already begun to retreat behind the mountains. And at that moment, I remembered the kitchen supplies I had put in my pickup.

I immediately went outside. I walked up to my pickup, grabbed the first box, and carried it into the house. It took three trips to carry everything inside.

As I was putting down the last box, my phone rang. Maya's name was flashing on the screen. Maya was my closest friend in the city; she had supported me in everything for years.

"Hello," I said, a bit breathless.

"Eva! God, finally! I was going crazy. How are you? Are you okay?" she asked. Her voice sounded genuinely worried.

I threw myself onto the old velvet couch to rest a bit.

"I'm still standing, I haven't collapsed," I said, laughing. Then my loneliness came to mind, what I'd experienced this week. "This place is a complete madhouse, Maya. People have seriously lost their minds. They refused to sell me food. I had to go to a town an hour away."

"What? Eva, that's completely crazy! If they're treating you like this, why are you still there?"

"I made a promise to my grandmother," I said, my voice softening. "I'm going to celebrate this Christmas here!"

There was a brief silence. She didn't want to upset me, but she was clearly worried about me being here.

Maya murmured, "Eva... you gave her a beautiful funeral. You honored her. Do you think you haven't done enough? You can come back home. You can even come to me. You don't have to torture yourself in those freezing mountains."

I closed my eyes. My grandmother's wise, loving gaze appeared before my eyes. In that moment, everything made sense.

"She wanted to spend her last Christmas here. Especially with me, she wanted to be here. I promised her, Maya. I think it will be good for both of us. I'll rest for a few weeks, then I'll come back. Besides, it will be like therapy for me, peace and quiet..."

"Okay," Maya said helplessly. "But what did you do about work?"

"I talked to the hospital. I took a month off," I said.

"I see... But Eva, please don't forget your vitamins. You hate the cold, that mountain house is definitely like a freezer. I'm afraid you'll get sick..."

I laughed. She was right, but I had to seem strong. "If you keep talking like this, I'm going to freeze on this couch. I need to get firewood, I have to light the fireplace..." I murmured hastily.

"Okay, okay! But you'll text me every day, deal?"

"Promise. We'll talk later, Maya," I said, hanging up hastily.

I got up and put my coat back on. The sun had almost disappeared; the air was cooling rapidly. I needed to light the fire before nightfall.

The woodshed was about twenty meters from the house. I opened its creaking door and took an armful of firewood. I loaded my arms so full that I could barely see in front of me.

I started walking toward the house. My long ash-blonde hair was blowing in the wind. Since I couldn't see ahead, I was moving forward with my head turned to the side.

And that's when I saw it.

At the entrance to the forest path... about ten meters away... stood an enormous wolf.

No. It wasn't a wolf. It was much bigger than a wolf.

It was literally the size of a bear. Its reddish-brown fur gleamed in the fading daylight. But what really froze me were those familiar eyes, those burning amber eyes. Intelligent. Conscious. Looking into my eyes with a piercing gaze.

I flinched at the image that suddenly came alive in my eyes; these were the eyes I had seen in my dreams since childhood. The familiar, warm, and longing eyes of that man...

I had been seeing this man in my dreams for as long as I could remember; he was the sweet and innocent playmate of my childhood.

As time passed and I grew older, those eyes had transformed into my dreams filled with my darkest and most passionate fantasies as a muscular, sexy man. Now how could a wolf have those eyes? God, I thought my brain was playing tricks on me. I was stunned for a moment.

When I stepped back in fear, my foot slipped on the ice.

The firewood in my arms scattered into the snow with a crash. I fell on my back. My breath was taken away. I couldn't move.

Then I pulled myself together. When I turned my head in that direction, it was gone. It had vanished...

I rubbed my eyes. I looked again, but the trail was completely empty. There were only trees. Snow and silence.

"What's happening..." I whispered, trembling. I couldn't wait here any longer, because I didn't know what animal would visit me next. I had to return home without becoming dinner for an animal.

I jumped to my feet, grabbed a long piece of wood to protect myself. I frantically scanned the surroundings with my eyes. There was nothing. No trace, no shadow, no movement.

Did I imagine it? Is this post-traumatic stress disorder? Or am I losing my mind?

I quickly gathered the scattered firewood, watching around me over my shoulder every second. Finally, I ran to the house.

As soon as I got inside, I quickly closed and locked the door. My hands trembling, I lit the fireplace.

I had calmed down a bit with the warmth of the fireplace. Sometimes people experiencing psychological distress can have hallucinations. Maybe I had experienced that too.

I hadn't had coffee in days. Yes, as a caffeine addict, I hadn't even thought about this during the grieving process. I went to the kitchen and made a strong, dark coffee. I sat on the floor in front of the fire and began to sip my coffee with pleasure.

Then that wolf came to my mind again.

"Even if it's real, it's just a wolf. A very big wolf. Completely normal for the mountains... right?" I murmured to myself.

I had experienced enough action for one day. Now I just wanted to rest a bit. But the universe chose to surprise me again.

Suddenly, there was a knocking sound at the door.

From fear, I almost spilled my coffee.

I fixed my eyes on the door. Who would knock on my door at this hour? On top of a mountain? In the middle of nowhere?

The worst scenarios immediately started spinning in my mind. The townspeople? Or had that giant wolf learned to knock on doors? Gathering my courage, I stood up in fear.

I went to the window and looked outside through the frosted glass.

On the porch stood a young woman about my age. Her curly red hair was in two braids, she had freckles on her cheeks, and on her face was a warm, reassuring smile.

Cautiously, I opened the door slightly.

"Yes... how can I help you?" I asked.

Her smile widened. "Hello! I'm Eleanor!" she said cheerfully.

I just stared for a moment. Was I supposed to know her?

She laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry! Well... do you remember me? I'm Elly!" she said.

I frowned. My brain was working slowly from exhaustion. I didn't know her. Who was Elly?

And then... a memory came alive before my eyes.

That girl with mud all over her face but smiling, with a gap between her teeth, with messy hair. We used to play together as children.

"Elly?!" I said cheerfully. "I can't believe it! Mud cake Elly?!"

"That's me!" she squealed with joy.

I opened the door all the way and hugged her.

"Welcome back!" she said, her eyes sparkling. "I heard you came back to town. I figured you'd have some things missing on your first night at home. I came to see you right away in case I could help."

This was truly the best thing that had happened to me today. An old face, a face that still loved me, seeing her made me so happy.

"Come in, come in!" I said. "It's freezing outside."

She walked toward the warm glow of the fire, rubbing her hands together. Then she looked at me with a compassionate expression in her eyes.

"I still can't believe you're here," she said.

I was very excited. "Me neither, I'm so happy right now," I managed to say. I think I had found something in this cursed town that would let me breathe a little...